Archive for December, 2014

At the beginning of the year I published my writing goals for 2014. Now it’s time to assess how I did. And in short… I made very few of my goals. But you know what? I’m giving 2014 a big thumbs up anyway, because it turned out to be a positive year for my writing career in other ways.

So here’s how I did on my planned writing goals for 2014:

1. Revise and polish the existing first draft of my next novel, The Red: Trials. Publication is tentatively scheduled for May.

Well. I did revise and polish it, and I had it all ready for publication…and then I sold the entire series to Saga Press, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. So The Red: Trials, now The Trials, will be published in 2015. Oh. And I also revised it one more time.

2. Write and finish two more Zeke Choy stories, bringing to an end the cycle that began with “Nahiku West” and continued in “Out In The Dark.” If I can pull it off, the last story will be long, maybe a novella.

Uh…nope. Didn’t even start on this. I think I’ve put this off for three years now, because all my writing time has been going to commissioned stories and novels. Expect to see this one reappear in my 2015 goals.

3. Write the initial draft of another novel. I’ve been debating what that novel should be, and though I haven’t decided yet, it will almost certainly be a sequel to something.

That was written by my younger self… and apparently I hadn’t decided yet if there was going to be a third novel in THE RED series. Well, younger self, there is indeed a third novel and I DID write an initial draft, and I am presently in the process of making that a presentable draft, so this goal gets a thumbs up.

4. Write at least three pieces of short fiction that are not part of the Zeke Choy cycle.

Nope. I wrote one short story at the beginning of the year and I did not like it. I refused to submit it to the requesting editor. 🙁 And the rest of the year went to novels. Well, I had a nice three-year run of short story writing. I was more prolific in 2011, 2012, and 2013 than I have ever been. Hopefully I’ll return to that in 2015.

5. Write at least three nonfiction posts that I feel comfortable marketing to high-circulation websites. (Nonfiction is very hard for me.)

Hmm…wanders off to check files…nope. No. I don’t think I wrote ANY. What was I doing with myself this year?? Oh, right. Working on three novels in various degrees of completion.

In summary, while I didn’t do everything I’d hoped, I’m pleased with what I did accomplish.

How did you do with your 2014 writing goals? Please comment. I’d love to hear from you.

Surf on over (does anyone still say “surf”?) to Book View Café, because from now through January 1, 2015, you’ll find a lot of ebooks on sale at 50% off, in many different genres.

Included are mysteries, historicals, romance, science fiction, fantasy, and probably a few others. Epub and mobi formats are available and everything is DRM free. Forty-eight authors are members of Book View Café, and most of them have something on sale.

I’ve got three books included in the sale: Memory (nominated for the John W Campbell Memorial Award), The Dread Hammer (scoundrel-lit fantasy), and The Bohr Maker (Locus Award – Best First Novel). Find them on this page.

So please visit! There are four pages of discounted ebooks. I hope you find something you love.

When working with a traditional publisher, the basic stages of revision are:

1 – an editorial letter in which the editor requests changes in plot or character, or better explanations of motivation or background, etc.

2 – Once the final manuscript is accepted, it goes to the copyeditor, who goes through the manuscript in close detail, correcting spelling, hyphenations, punctuation, and noting inconsistencies. The manuscript then goes back to the author giving us a chance to un-do some of that careful work if we don’t agree with it, along with a chance to correct the inconsistencies. This is also a chance to make more minor revisions. Huzzah!

3 – The manuscript goes back to the publisher, the changes are added to the master file, and the manuscript is then “typeset” for ultimate printing. This is the stage when the pages look like book pages. A PDF file is generated and these “page proofs” are sent to the author, who gets to read the whole thing one more time — and make minor changes … which we do. But that’s it. This is the last chance to fix things up.

So where am I?

Book 1: I finished going over the page proofs a few days ago, and will be sending my changes back just after the New Year, when it’s back-to-business in the publishing world. And yes! I made some changes, despite that this book has already been published, reviewed, award-nominated, and re-revised. Writers are never satisfied. But the changes are minor and go mostly to clarifying and making this book consistent with the next one.

Book 2: Yesterday I finished my final read-through of the manuscript after addressing the editor’s requested changes and making a few of my own. The revised manuscript will go back to Saga Press on Monday, and if no more changes are requested, it will go to a copyeditor.

Book 3: The first draft is done and I already made a start on revisions, but now I’ve got only five weeks to turn in a reasonable draft. So it’s back-to-work on this one. (Must write faster…)

Tiritiri Matangi Island is an amazingly successful ecological restoration project. The island itself is one of the Hauraki Gulf Islands off of Auckland. It used to be farmed, but beginning in 1984, rodents on the island were killed off and replanting was begun — the beginning of an immense volunteer project. Today the island’s vegetation is mostly native, and is home to many native bird species that thrive in the absence of introduced pest and predators.

Both Ron and I are interested in conservation, and we were told multiple times that we must visit the island — but we almost didn’t go. The weather during our last few days in Auckland was cold, windy, and wet, and a visit to an offshore island where we would need to remain for most of the day was not all that appealing. But we gathered our courage, and went anyway on our last full day in the city. And we were so glad we did!

The western side of the island, where we docked, was cold, a bit wet, and very windy as expected, but once we left the shore and entered the shelter of the bush, the weather wasn’t bad at all.

The island itself is beautiful, again with those amazingly well-kept New Zealand trails! The walks are guided by volunteers, which is wonderful for learning about the island’s history and having help sighting the native birds, which were very active during our visit. So yes! If you’re ever in Auckland, consider a visit. This is a wonderful conservation project, a great way to spend a day, and the hiking is easy.

Here’s our transportation, docked at Tiritiri Matangi Island.

The western shore, a photo that does not communicate the fierce wind that was blowing and an imminent, if passing, shower!

An oystercatcher nesting on the beach. This is my only semi-decent bird photo, and only because the subject was considerate enough to hold still!(more…)